Stephen S. Weinstein Trial Advocacy Program


Upcoming Events

Connect with the Stephen S. Weinstein Program!

Litigation Skills Summer Institute

The Stephen S. Weinstein Trial Advocacy Program is now accepting applications for the Litigation Skills Summer Institute (LSSI). LSSI is designed for practitioners and qualified law students interested in mastering pre-trial and trial skills. This intensive two week program consists of three courses and a cutting-edge Digital Evidence Presentations Workshop. The courses are offered at nights and weekends and participants may take one, two or all offerings. Academic credit is available for law students and CLE credit is available for practitioners.

Fact and Expert Witness Depositions: The Two separate intensive courses include short lectures and demonstrations by faculty on how to prepare for, take, and defend depositions followed by in-class depositions by participants and webcast review.   

Civil Trial Advocacy: Participants learn how to prepare and conduct direct and cross-examinations, deliver effective opening statements and closing arguments, make timely objections, and lay the proper foundation to admit evidence during the course of a trial. The course concludes with a full mock trial before a sitting judge and citizen jurors.

Digital Presentations Workshop: A workshop that includes instruction on effective ways to incorporate digital presentations in opening statements, direct examinations, and closing arguments followed by in-class presentations by participants with individualized critiques by faculty.

Mock Trial Takes First Place at the Estrella Trial Advocacy Competition

WCL TeamThe WCL team of Ryan Fanning (2L), Sarah Thomas (3L), Rachael Curtis (2L), and Ellis Palividas (3L) (left to right in the photograph) took first place at the Estrella Trial Advocacy Competition this past weekend.  The Competition was co-hosted by the George Washington University Law School and the Estrella law firm in San Juan, Puerto Rico.  The problem was a civil premises liability case where the plaintiff sued the defendant for injuries she sustained as a result of an armed robbery in the defendant's parking lot. 

The students defeated teams from University of California at Los Angeles, University of Missouri at Kansas City, Fordham University, and St. John's University on their way to the top. Teams from local schools such as Georgetown Law Center, George Mason University and George Washington University School of Law also participated in the competition.  I had the pleasure of co-coaching this talented and hard-working group of students with Elizabeth Lippy, Assistant Director of the Trial Advocacy Program. 

The American University, Washington College of Law's Stephen S. Weinstein Trial Advocacy Program provides experiential learning opportunities for students to gain proficiency in trial litigation skills. Skills are honed in a "controlled simulation clinic" environment using a hands-on teaching style and cutting-edge technology. The Program focuses on learning-by-doing, with practical instruction, demonstrations, feedback, and critique used to direct student learning. For more information about the program please view our brochure.

The Program offers approximately 35 sections of a variety of courses to more than 400 students each year. Each course includes specialized skills training, development of case theory and themes, analysis of strategies, and discussions of professional ethics.

A special feature of the Trial Advocacy Program is a presentation by a professional actor, Paul Morella, on the use of theatre skills and techniques to communicate and persuade more effectively.

In addition to the courses offered by the Trial Advocacy Program, students are encouraged to become involved in organizations such as the Mock Trial Honor Society. The Mock Trial Honor Society is a student led organization that oversees and assists with the coordination and training of WCL's competitive trial teams. Those student teams then compete in both civil and criminal competitions throughout the United States.

Benefactor

The Program is entering a new chapter thanks to the generosity of Stephen S. Weinstein, WCL class of 1965, a distinguished litigator and past participant in the Program. In celebration of his recent gift to WCL, the Trial Advocacy Program has been named the Stephen S. Weinstein Trial Advocacy Program. His contribution will enable the Program to create additional scholarship in trial advocacy; enhance the WCL courtroom facilities; and provide opportunities, through conferences and lectures, to explore current issues relating to the theory and practice of trial advocacy.


Contact Information

David Aaronson, Director
American University
Washington College of Law
4801 Massachusetts Avenue, NW
Suite 410
Washington, DC 20016
Tel: 202-274-4201

Elizabeth Boals, Associate Director
American University
Washington College of Law
4801 Massachusetts Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20016
Tel: 202-274-4073

Elizabeth Lippy, Assistant Director
American University
Washington College of Law
4801 Massachusetts, Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20016
Tel: 202-274-4145

Kimberley Green, Program Coordinator
American University
Washington College of Law
4801 Massachusetts Avenue, NW
Suite 530
Washington, DC 20016
Tel: 202-274-4258